Sir Hugh William Bell Cairns KBE

FRCS Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (FRCS) is a professional qualification to practise as a senior surgeon in Ireland or the United Kingdom. It is bestowed on an intercollegiate basis by the four Royal Colleges of Surgeons (the Royal C ...

(26 June 1896 – 18 July 1952) was an Australian

neurosurgeon Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spinal cord and per ...

. For most of his life he lived in England. His concern about

despatch rider A despatch rider (or dispatch) is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle (and occasionally in Egypt during World War I, on camels). In the UK 'despatch rider' is also a term used for a motorcycle courier. Despatch riders were use ...

injuries sparked research which led to increased use of

motorcycle helmet A motorcycle helmet is a type of helmet used by motorcycle riders. Motorcycle helmets contribute to motorcycle safety by protecting the rider's head in the event of an impact. They reduce the risk of head injury by 69% and the risk of death by 42%. ...

s. After one of his patients died, who was

Lawrence of Arabia Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British archaeologist, army officer, diplomat, and writer who became renowned for his role in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918) and the Sinai and Palestine Campaign (1915–1918 ...

, he studied the positive effect the use of motorbike helmets had on reducing the severity of head injuries.

Early years and education

Hugh Cairns was born in

Port Pirie Port Pirie is a small city on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf in South Australia, north of the state capital, Adelaide. The city has an expansive history which dates back to 1845. Port Pirie was the first proclaimed regional city in South A ...

, South Australia, but spent his early childhood in Riverton, South Australia where he received all of his primary school education. He went to

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

for his secondary education at Adelaide High School and tertiary education at the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

. He was awarded the 1917 South Australian

Rhodes Scholarship The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

and went to the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

to read Medicine. He was president of the Balliol Boat Club and represented Oxford as bow in the

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

of 1920.

Career

Cairns worked as a neurosurgeon at the London Hospital and with

Harvey Cushing Harvey Williams Cushing (April 8, 1869 – October 7, 1939) was an American neurosurgeon, pathologist, writer, and draftsman. A pioneer of brain surgery, he was the first exclusive neurosurgeon and the first person to describe Cushing's disease. ...

at Harvard before setting up the Nuffield Department of Surgery in Oxford, in which he became the first Nuffield Professor of Surgery. He was a key figure in the development of neurosurgery as a speciality, the formation of the

Oxford University Medical School Oxford University Medical School is the medical school of the University of Oxford in the city of Oxford, England. It is a component of the Medical Sciences Division, and teaching is carried out in its various constituent departments. Overview ...

, and the treatment of head injuries during the Second World War. The Cairns Library (one of the

Bodleian Libraries The Bodleian Libraries are a collection of 28 libraries that serve the University of Oxford in England, including the Bodleian Library itself, as well as many other (but not all) central and faculty libraries. As of the 2016–17 year, the librar ...

) at the

John Radcliffe Hospital The John Radcliffe Hospital (informally known as the JR) is a large tertiary teaching hospital in Oxford, England. It forms part of the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and is named after John Radcliffe, an 18th-century physici ...

in Oxford is named after him, as is the medical school Hugh Cairns Surgical Society. A

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...

for him at his 1920s residence at

Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Ch ...

has been erected. In June 1946 he received the title of Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire. While at the London Hospital and in Oxford, Cairns trained US-born surgeon Joseph Buford Pennybacker, who in 1952 took over as director of the Radcliffe's neurosurgery department, a job he held until he retired in 1971. Profoundly affected by treating

T. E. Lawrence Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British archaeologist, army officer, diplomat, and writer who became renowned for his role in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918) and the Sinai and Palestine Campaign (1915–1918 ...

for head injuries during the six days before the latter died after a

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

accident, Cairns began a long study of what he saw as the unnecessary loss of life by motorcycle

s through head injuries. His research led to the use of crash helmets by both military and civilian motorcyclists. As a consequence of treating Lawrence, Cairns would ultimately save the lives of many motorcyclists. He died of cancer at the

Radcliffe Infirmary The Radcliffe Infirmary was a hospital in central north Oxford, England, located at the southern end of Woodstock Road on the western side, backing onto Walton Street. History The initial proposals to build a hospital in Oxford were put forw ...

, Oxford on 18 July 1952.Hugh William Bell Cairns
Whonamedit. Retrieved on 3 June 2014. The Society of British Neurological Surgeons established an annual lecture in his name. There is a road named after him at

Bedford Park, South Australia Bedford Park is a southern suburb of Adelaide in South Australia. The Hancock family established a homestead and farm at the foot of the Adelaide Hills in the mid 19th century. A family name from an earlier generation lent its name to the proper ...

, adjacent to Flinders Medical Centre. A ward at the

Walton Centre The Walton Centre, formerly known as the Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, is a major neurology hospital located in the suburb of Fazakerley in the city of Liverpool, England. It is one of several specialist hospitals located within ...

, Liverpool, is named after him.

Notes

References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cairns, Hugh 1896 births 1952 deaths Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Oxford University Boat Club rowers University of Adelaide alumni Australian Rhodes Scholars Australian neurosurgeons English neurosurgeons 20th-century Australian medical doctors 20th-century English medical doctors Harvard Medical School people People from Port Pirie People from Loughton Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century surgeons Australian military personnel of World War I Australian military doctors Royal Army Medical Corps officers British Army personnel of World War II Australian emigrants to the United Kingdom People educated at Adelaide High School